RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        12 January 2006
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050006507


      I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record
of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in
the case of the above-named individual.

|     |Mr. Carl W. S. Chun               |     |Director             |
|     |Mrs. Victoria A. Donaldson        |     |Analyst              |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Ms. Linda D. Simmons              |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Rodney E. Barber              |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Rea M. Nuppenau               |     |Member               |

      The Board considered the following evidence:

      Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records.

      Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion,
if any).

THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests award of the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states during his service in the Korean War he received
burns from an enemy shell and was treated at a Field Hospital for over a
month.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of a Department of Veterans Affairs
rating decision letter.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
which occurred on 3 May 1954, the date of his separation from active duty.
The application submitted in this case was received by the ABCMR on 2 May
2005.

2.  Title 10, U.S. Code, Section 1552(b), provides that applications for
correction of military records must be filed within 3 years after discovery
of the alleged error or injustice.  This provision of law allows the Army
Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse failure to file
within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines that it
would be in the interest of justice to do so.  In this case, the ABCMR will
conduct a review of the merits of the case to determine if it would be in
the interest of justice to excuse the applicant’s failure to timely file.

3.  The applicant’s military records are not available for review.  A fire
destroyed approximately 18 million service members’ records at the National
Personnel Records Center in 1973.  It is believed that the applicant’s
records were lost or destroyed in that fire.  However, there were
sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record to conduct a fair
and impartial review of this case.

4.  The applicant's records show that he enlisted in the Regular Army on 4
May 1951 for a period of three years.  The highest grade the applicant held
while serving on active duty was corporal (T)/pay grade E-4.  The applicant
was honorably separated from active duty on 3 May 1954.

5.  Item 27 (Decoration, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations and
Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) of the applicant's DD Form 214
(Report of Separation from the Armed Forces of the United States) does not
show award of the Purple Heart.

6.  Item 29 (Wounds Received as a Result of Action with Enemy Forces) of
the applicant's DD Form 214 contains the entry "none."

7.  There are no medical records in the applicant's official military
personnel file that show he sustained wounds as a result of hostile action
or that show he was treated for wounds sustained as a result of hostile
action.

8.  There are no general orders in the applicant's records to show he was
awarded the Purple Heart.

9.  The applicant's name does not appear on the Korean War Casualty Roster.


10.  The applicant's records contain copies of morning reports which show
that he was treated for burns to his face and left hand.  These forms also
show that he was placed on quarters during the period 21 January 1953
through 27 January 1953.  Although these forms show that the injuries
occurred in the line of duty, they do not indicate that they were sustained
as a result of hostile action.

11.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent
part, that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained as a result of
hostile action.  Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify that
the wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required
treatment by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been
made a matter of official record.

12.  The applicant provided a 19 January 1996 letter from the Department of
Veterans Affairs which stated that he was entitled to a disability rating
of 10 percent for residuals of burn scars on his hands.  Although this
letter states the applicant's injuries were service connected, there is no
indication that the injuries were sustained as a result of hostile action.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends that he is entitled to award of the Purple Heart
because of burns he sustained from an enemy shell.

2.  There are no general orders that show the applicant was awarded the
Purple Heart.  There is no evidence in his service personnel records which
shows that he was wounded or injured as a result of hostile action or
treated for such wounds.  The applicant's name is not listed on the Korean
War Casualty Roster.

3.  In the absence of evidence that the applicant was wounded or injured as
a result of hostile action and treated for those wounds, there is
insufficient evidence upon which to base award of the Purple Heart in this
case.

4.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 3 May 1954; therefore, the time for
the applicant to file a request for correction of any error or injustice
expired on 2 May 1957.  Although the applicant did not file within the
ABCMR's statute of limitations, it is appropriate to waive failure to
timely file based on the fact there is no statute of limitations on
requests for award of the Purple Heart.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

_LDS___  __RMN___  _REB___  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined it was appropriate to waive failure to timely file
in this case.

2.  The Board determined that the evidence presented does not demonstrate
the existence of a probable error or injustice.  Therefore, the Board
determined that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis
for correction of the records of the individual concerned.





                                      _Linda D. Simmons____
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050006507                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20060112                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY                                    |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |Mr. Chun                                |
|ISSUES         1.       |                                        |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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